4 April, 2017

Major graphics conference chooses Brisbane

Cropped shot of a young computer programmer looking through data

Brisbane has again proven its credentials as an Asia-Pacific hub for the creative and digital industries with Asia’s largest computer graphics conference and exhibition choosing the city as its first Australian destination.

To be held in Brisbane in November 2019, SIGGRAPH Asia will attract 6000 of the world’s top technical and creative talent across four days of discussions and demonstrations on emerging computer graphics and interactive techniques.

As part of the event, SIGGRAPH Asia’s Computer Animation Festival will showcase a global collection of leading creative animation and visual effects works.

The successful bid to host SIGGRAPH Asia for the first time in Australia was a collaborative effort led by Brisbane Marketing, Tourism Events Queensland, the Brisbane SIGGRAPH chapter, and the Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre (BCEC).

Lord Mayor Graham Quirk said attracting SIGGRAPH Asia to Brisbane demonstrated the city’s growing influence in the Asia-Pacific region.

“The conference component of SIGGRAPH Asia will deliver an impressive $3.6 million in economic impact alone. The event will further enhance our new world city’s reputation for staging first-class events and supporting the creative and digital industries,” Cr Quirk said.

“I’m delighted that SIGGRAPH Asia organisers also recognised the opportunity to hold the event during Brisbane’s annual Asia Pacific Screen Awards, making it the ideal complement to our city’s celebration of culture and the arts.”

Mathias Kuepper, Managing Director of SIGGRAPH Asia organiser Koelnmesse, said this was the first time in the event’s history that a host city had been chosen this far in advance.

“Brisbane’s vibrant and rapidly growing research, innovation and technology ecosystem, alongside its world-class facilities and great attractions, make it an excellent location to host Asia’s most prestigious event in computer graphics and interactive techniques,” Kuepper said.

“We are expecting the momentum to build as we promote Brisbane at SIGGRAPH Asia in Bangkok (2017) and Tokyo (2018). Key industry players have already shown great interest in being a part of the show in 2019 and from an organising perspective, this gives us a lot of confidence that Brisbane will host a stellar SIGGRAPH Asia.”

Brisbane SIGGRAPH chapter Chair, Associate Professor Tomasz Bednarz, added, “Our mission is to make sure the Australasian region is activated, helping us to deliver a unique SIGGRAPH experience in Brisbane.

“We will also be working to collocate other events around the same time as SIGGRAPH Asia to encourage the global graphics community to enjoy beautiful Australia.”

BCEC General Manager Bob O’Keeffe said it was an exciting opportunity to be the first convention centre in Australia to host SIGGRAPH Asia in 2019.

“Having recently been voted ‘The World’s Best Convention Centre 2016-18’ by the International Association of Congress Centres, we are keen to showcase the centre’s world-leading facilities and infrastructure including its creative and technical assets,” O’Keeffe said.

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Brisbane SIGGRAPH